The invention relates to a package for flowable contents, having a tube formed by at least one longitudinal seam. At the ends of the tube are a bottom and cover. The cover consists of thermoplastics synthetic material with no carrier material, and is injection molded onto the tube and has a pourer device. The tube consists of carrier material, for instance cardboard, coated at least on one side with thermoplastics synthetic material. The bottom is tetragonal and is constructed from the folded over tube of the package as a folded-over closure. A handle connected to the cover is mounted laterally on the tube and below the cover.
Of the many packages for liquids, some are known which are shaped into a tube from a flat sheet of coated cardboard, are filled and provided with a bottom and cover. The smaller packages used for milk, fruit juices, wine and the like, for example, those which have a capacity of one liter, in most cases do not have a handle. There are, however, also endeavors to produce larger packages, for example, for carrying drinking water.
In the case of these larger parkages, it is expedient to provide the consumer with a handle fixed on the package so that handling, namely, carrying out and pouring out, can be more convenient.
Package manufacturers have applied various considerations to see how a handle, mounted on a package of the aforementioned type intended for flowable material, can be produced most competitively and favorably. One consideration resides in having a part of the tube walls adjacent the periphery of the cover folded onto itself to constitute the handle, being connected to form a double-walled surface in which the handle aperture is provided. Thought has also been given to the convenience of extending the molded-on cover beyond the top edge of the double-walled surface with the handle aperture in order to provide. a reinforcing web. The manufacturer could also produce such a package from a flat sheet, in which case the other advantages of known packages could also be retained, for example, easy opening of an otherwise tightly sealed pourer device, reclosure thereof, etc.
The doubled-walled surface with the gripping aperture could in accordance with the aforedescribed package be of such a triangular shape that its top edge forms a short leg while its outwardly folded edge which extends substantially in the longitudinal direction of the tube forms a long le, the hypotenuse being constitued by the two superimposed inwardly folded edges. This face could best be of triangular construction, each half of the doubled-walled face likewise being triangular. This provides ready facility for gripping and a good strong handle.
However, such a package would have the disadvantage that apart from a special and unavoidable shaping cut at the bottom and cover of the package, a folding process for the said triangular face would become necessary, representing a relatively large amount of dead space in the package as a whole. Such a package could only be stacked and stored by occupying relatively considerable space; transport would involve considerable dead space. However, the package manufacturer is aware that the costs of transporting and storing liquid packages play a substantial role that further consideration had to be given to the subject in order further to improve the aforedescribed package.